The invention relates to a door handle of the type defined in the preamble of claim 1. In the known door handle the pressure-actuated element is formed as a uniform plastic member in the form of a cap which is inserted into the recess at the end of the bow-type handle.
In a known door handle (DE 18 42 237 U), a cap-shaped push button is pressed outwardly by a pressure spring in a telescope-like way from a bore in the door handle, a pressure spring at the inner end face of the push button being responsible for this action. The mantle area of the push button is surrounded at its lower area with a plastic sleeve which improves the slide guiding of the push button and is supposed to prevent riffle formation on the push button.
It is also known (DE 19 44 225 U) to provide a seal of elastomeric material for the purpose of a telescope-like guiding of a push button in the area of a handle. This sealing material is fastened in a door recess by ring-shaped laminas. In this case, the axial movability of the push button is also realized by separate pressure springs which are supported on the inner push button end.
There are also push actuators in door handles whose restoring force is provided by the plastic material itself. Such caps with integrated restoring action are favorable with regard to manufacturing technology and assembly.
In the known handle, the push actuators is hard to move when it is desired to use a scratch-resistant, hard plastic material for making the cap. If a softer plastic material were to be used for making the push actuator, its pleasant appearance would disadvantageously change within a short period of time by scratches or bulges.
The invention has the object to develop a push actuator of the kind mentioned in the preamble of claim 1 which, even after extended use, maintains its pleasant appearance and its functionality but can still be easily actuated. This is achieved according to the invention by the measures defined in the claim which have the following special meaning.
The push actuator according to the invention is comprised of a combination insert which is comprised of two components which are different with respect to their material. One component, which in the following is referred to as the xe2x80x9chard componentxe2x80x9d is arranged at least in the central area of the outer cap.bottom and is comprised of a hard, scratch-resistant plastic material. On the other hand, the second component is formed of an essentially softer shape-elastic plastic material which forms the entire cap but in the area of the cap bottom extends only on the inner surface, below the hard component. This second component is therefore referred to in the following as xe2x80x9csoft componentxe2x80x9d. The push actuator can be manufactured easily and precisely of these two components in a two-step injection molding process. Because the soft component is arranged exclusively in the area of the cap mantle, a good push actuation possibility of the mounted combination insert is provided. The good elastic properties of the soft component are used in this context. The push button actuator is easily movable. The hard component, on the other hand, is arranged in the zone of the cap bottom where the push actuation is realized. It provides a reinforcement of the cap bottom which is very favorable for the actuation of the electrical switch. The securing and arresting of the combination insert in the recess of the bow-type handle are not endangered according to the invention, despite the use of the soft component in this zone, because these parts of the combination which are inherently soft are supported by radial contact surfaces, axial shoulders and the like on the strong material of the bow-type handle at the desired locations. The formation of locking elements of the soft component is favorable for a precise plug-in assembly and fixation.